Colette had led Manon to the edge of the town, much to the brunette's dismay, although her body had been much better since the system helped her…
It was a botanical shop near the border- just before crossing a river. The store was as tall as most buildings and twice as wide, two stories with glass windows all the way around except for the back wall. The girls filed inside, and Manon was immediately interested in everything.
There were plants growing everywhere- but aside from that there were all kinds of interesting items the owner had acquired from trading and bartering. weapons hung on the walls, seed packets for strange plants, and various unique decorations made of strange material. She was immediately drawn to a shelf to the far right wall that had multiple magic rings made of crystal.
"Colette, are these like that one you have?" She asked, touching a band made of green jade. The redhead walked towards the front counter, where the owner was nowhere to be seen just yet.
"Um, yeah. But they'll have different functions. So ask me before you decide you want to buy it." 1000 Thions wasn't a lot but it wasn't a small amount. "The rings could use up all your money quickly, all for a ring used to scrub surfaces clean quickly or something.".
Manon waved her away with her hand saying she would- concentrating on the different colors available. Colette sighed and looked up at the counter on her tiptoes, height being a bit of a factor at this age. The glass counter encasing several herbs and potions was literally three to four inches taller than her. With some effort, she reached up and tapped her small hand on the little bell signaling there was a customer.
Similarly to her, Manon, who was about 6 inches shorter than her- struggled to reach a ring on a higher shelf.
"Please- be careful with those!" a male voice rang out. The man was of average height, with deep blue hair braided back away from his face and dark blue eyes. He looked about late 20s, exhausted and stressed, his glasses on the crown of his head as he called out to Manon. For a moment, he didn't even notice Colette until she did a little hop, which brought her into his range of vision but at the cost of nearly startling him to death. "Heavens!" He exclaimed, grasping at the counter to balance himself. the small ginger 7 year old stepped back a little so it was easier for him to see her.
"Hi! Do you have any braise? We would like to buy 2. Off the record." The ginger requested. The man stared between the two 7 year olds in his shop. Off the record meant that no one could trace that they were purchased, which was technically illegal. "Also, we would like the braise sealed."
"You want secret undetectable braises?" the shop owner confirmed, his expression wildly baffled. Colette nodded insistently.
"Preferably one of Angelite and another of Larimar. I think it'll suit us." Colette said matter-of-factly.
The man's name was Harry, a freelance botanist Colette had met many times. He was a very important character she needed a relationship with early on. Usually you would have to befriend the old man at the fruit stand to get this information of where to find Harry and what to say- which was only step one in gaining an AP meter for him... but they'd skipped over that. It wasn't a huge issue, though, as the old man's only function as an NPC was telling you about the shop.
"Sorry- I'm just trying to understand how you even know about this, Miss?" Harry looked rather weary, his eyes still darting over to Manon to make sure she was not knocking anything over.
"Miss! You can go upstairs and find more magic jewelry in a lower case…so please…." He didn't even need to say anymore as Manon bounded up the stairs with a speed unknown to the innocent shopkeeper. He certainly couldn't leave her alone for long. Especially because he was expecting…other guests. So he turned back to Colette, deciding to look past the oddities of the current situation and finish her request.
"Okay…um…your names?"
….
….
….
Manon leapt up the stairs quickly, navigated the forest of potted plants on the upper level with minimal curiosity. She really was wondering what pieces had combat properties. Colette mentioned that upon entering the academy- she got to choose a class. But she wondered what that would mean for her- who's character was originally an NPC. Did she already have a class? If so could it be changed? Or could she develop it early like one would if this game were reality?
Due to the game's logic, a lot of things happened at the convenience of the player character, Colette, and not others. So she assumed that likely all other characters were born with affinities and classes rather than choosing them at the academy.
Manon had just spotted the case the shop owner had been referring to, and approached it without hesitation, scanning its contents. It was a glass case only about two feet off the ground, 10 feet long and 5 feet wide against the far back wall.
There were a vast amount of magic bracelets, pins, and earrings. All in disarray. Manon didn't even know where to start- but she was definitely planning to make a complaint about the store organization before she left this place. With the tip of her tongue sticking out, the brunette used her black gloved hands to lift the top of the case open and start touching everything.
She was busy rummaging around when she was...for lack of better term...subtly disturbed and annoyed.
....
"...so i…."
"We….and …..not safe to….."
"....lost in…..when...to the capital….."
"If it's ....why don't…..with Percy?"
"....Hate Percy."
Manon's brown eye twitched, her fingers dropping the large pearl she was twiddling with. Two kids were whispering and gossiping behind several rows of plants to her left. Perhaps they hadn't noticed her? She had only just noticed them- but it wasn't as if she was quiet or anything. Did they really think they were alone?
Rather than yelling which she really, truly desired- she cleared her throat, just to make sure they knew she was there. Almost immediately, the whisperers stopped. Manon didn't even look, only saw a blurry form out of the corner of her eye, a boy with deep skin and black clothing sliding through the maze of plants away from her. She sighed, glad to finally be left alone to her own devices, picking up some black pearl earrings to examine next. No more whispers. The earrings shone with an odd iridescence, and had a peculiar design on them, a rune.
Manon rubbed her thumb over the etched rune, wondering what it meant as she stood up straight.
"That's algiz. It's a protection rune. The earrings will save your life once, or prevent harm twice." A voice rang out. It was obviously a child- but older than Manon's current self.
The brunette looked over her shoulder, and was suddenly blinded by bright….pink.
…..
….
….
Colette waited as Harry retrieved the braise she requested, wondering if Manon was okay. She knew what happened next, that after leaving she would encounter someone very important. She just needed to make sure Manon had as little interaction as possible.
…But things were not how they were supposed to be.
Colette saw gold before she saw him.
Stepping slowly down the stairs, head held high despite his young age, perfect posture, perfect expression, perfect face. Skin a dark cool amber, and glistening shiny black hair. And the gold- his eyes and the first thing she had noticed- it brought back memories of his route.
"Harry assured me this would be a private visit…." the 8 year old spoke extremely formal for his age, his voice at ease. Colette could not even react.
This was wrong. All wrong. The boy smiled softly at Colette's expression once he finally looked directly at her. The smile was not kind. It was polite, and there was a definitive difference.
"You may greet me."
As if all the air entered Colette's small lungs once more, she bowed deeply, her hands resting on her stomach. She didn't come up for a while, until the boy laughed, clearly amused at her humiliation.
"Fun. How fun." He laughed, the sound as melodic as it was cutting. Ah, Colette liked this love interest, but as a child he was insufferable. "Alright, that's enough, miss." He waved her away, allowing Colette to rise. She did.
She stood up straight and got a full view of him, of his entire regal noble self.
His sharp handsome features were striking even in adolescence, even before he was done growing. And in person, he still took Colette aback.
[AP 12]
He was Antoni Faye Dragomir Orléan. The soon to be crowned Prince of the Empire, and a rather dangerous future love interest.